BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1933
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 28, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Felipe Fuentes, Chair
AB 1933 (Brownley) - As Amended: April 5, 2010
Policy Committee: Education
Vote:9-0
Human Services
6-0
Urgency: No State Mandated Local Program:
Yes Reimbursable: Yes
SUMMARY
This bill requires a foster child to continue his or her
education in the school of origin through the duration of the
academic year, if the court's jurisdiction is terminated prior
to the end of the academic year. Specifically, this bill:
1)Requires the local education agency (LEA) to allow a foster
child (if he or she is transitioning between grade levels) to
continue attending the same school district in the same
attendance area.
2)Requires the LEA to allow a foster child to attend the
appropriate middle or high school that he or she would have
otherwise attended, regardless if it is located in another
school district, as specified.
FISCAL EFFECT
Minor absorbable GF/98 mandated costs to LEAs to comply with
this measure.
COMMENTS
1)Purpose . As of October 2009, there were 66,000 foster
children in California. Of these children, approximately
43,965 (67%) are between five and 18. Several research
studies have documented the impacts school mobility has on the
educational success of foster children. According to the
National Conference of State Legislators (NCSL) policy brief
AB 1933
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entitled: Educating Children in State Foster Care (March
2008), "An estimated two-thirds to three-quarters of children
and youth who enter the foster care system must change
schools. One study found that almost 65% of children
entering foster care had to transfer to a new school in the
middle of the school year."
The NCSL report further states: "School mobility has been
shown to have a significant negative effect on children's
academic progress and opportunities for educational success.
Studies have found a relationship between frequent school
changes and an increased risk of failing a grade in school or
performing poorly on standardized tests. One study found that
children and youth in foster care who attended public schools
scored 16 to 20 percentile points below youth who were not in
foster care on statewide standardized tests at grades three,
six and nine."
This bill requires an LEA to allow foster children to attend
the same school they would otherwise have attended, regardless
of school district location, and allows the foster child to
continue his or her education for the remainder of the
academic year, regardless of a court's jurisdiction, as
specified.
AB 490 (Steinberg), Chapter 862, Statutes of 2003 , instituted
a number of reforms designed to promote school stability and
ensure that pupils residing in foster care have a meaningful
opportunity to meet the academic achievement standards to
which all students are held. For example, this measure
established that a student has the right to remain in his or
her school of origin, pending the resolution of a dispute over
placement. It also required each county office of education to
appoint a staff person to act as education liaison for foster
youth.
2)Related Legislation . SB 1353 (Wright), pending in the Senate
Appropriations Committee, provides that consideration of the
proximity to the school in which a child is enrolled at the
time of placement in foster care is one indicator of the best
interests of the child with respect to educational stability.
3)Previous Legislation . AB 1067 (Brownley) required LEAs that
provide transportation in their school districts to take into
account the special transportation needs of foster youth,
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including providing transportation to their school of origin.
This bill was held on this committee's Suspense File in May
2009.
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Rodriguez / APPR. / (916)
319-2081